Privacy & Consent.

Your Choice, Your Voice: How We Ask for Consent

At You Matter Community Project CIC, we believe that every person we support should have total control over their information and how they participate. We make sure that "asking for consent" is a simple, clear, and unhurried conversation.

a. When do we ask for consent?

We ask for your permission at three specific stages of your journey with us:

When you join, we take down your name or contact details to get you started.
When we take photos: If we want to take a picture or video at a community event to show the joy of the project.
When we share your story: If we want to use a quote or a story about how the project helped you in our annual report.

b. How do we ask?

We understand that official forms can sometimes feel overwhelming. We use a "Triple-Check" approach to make sure you are comfortable:

The Friendly Conversation: We explain what we are asking for in plain English (no legal jargon).
The Simple Form: We provide a clear, large-print "tick-box" form so you can choose exactly what you are happy with.
The Right to Change: We remind you that saying "Yes" today doesn't mean you can't say "No" tomorrow. You can withdraw your consent at any time.

What are we asking for?

When we ask for consent, it usually falls into these three categories:

Service Consent: To safely provide support (e.g., keeping your phone number to call you about a visit).

Marketing Consent: To use your photo or story on our website or social media to help us get more funding.

Emergency Consent: To know who to call if you feel unwell while you are with us.

Our "Gold Standard" Promise

We follow the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) guidelines, but we go a step further for our community:

No Pressure: We will never make you feel like you have to say yes to join our activities.
Family Involvement: If you’d like a family member or carer to be present when we talk about consent, we encourage it.
Secure Storage: Your signed forms and details are kept locked away or on a password-protected system—never shared with third parties without your direct permission.

Data Protection

Sharing Your Information

We do not sell your personal data.

We may share your information only when necessary with: - Food banks

and partner community organisations - Local authorities or support

services (where appropriate) - Emergency services, if there is a serious

concern for your safety

Any organisations we share data with are required to keep your

information secure and use it only for agreed purposes.

How We Store and Protect Your Data

We take appropriate security measures to protect your data, including: -

Secure paper filing systems - Password-protected digital records -

Access limited to authorised staff and volunteers

We keep your information only for as long as necessary to provide

services and meet legal requirements.